Yesterday I posted a picture of the Borage in bloom, and today it looks like this!!!

 

Funny, the difference just one day makes.  The whole garden seems to be showing this trend.  One day it's little, and the next day...taking off!!!!!  So exciting!!!!!

 

HAPPY GARDENING!!!!

 

 

 

Yep, the flowers are really that BLUE!!!!  They look like shooting stars.  Sometimes, it's called starflower.

 

Borage is an edible herb:  both flowers and leaves are edible.  They taste like cucumbers.  We put the flowers in salads, but the leaves are hairy, and feel funky in your mouth.  But...you can eat them and they won't kill you.  (See my article about edible flowers, back in August.)  Just go to Searching the site, and put in edible flowers.

 

Borage grows easily from seeds;  they actually self-seed in the garden.  We keep them in the garden to attract pollinators, and to deter Tomato hornworm.  Works GREAT!!!!  And they're pretty.  

 

We LOVE borage.

 

HAPPY GARDENING!!!!

 

This beautiful vine is growing at Nancy and Pete's.  It is Trumpet Honeysuckle, Lonicera sempervirens, also called Coral Honeysuckle.  You can buy it at most garden centers, or you could talk Nancy into a few cuttings; she has lots!!!!  

 

It's related to the familiar Japanese Honeysuckle that we see growing in the wild.  It is almost as vigorous as the wild, but can be trained more easily.  It is beautiful trained on an arbor or trellis. 

 

Best of all, the hummingbirds love it!!!  So do i!!!

 

HAPPY GARDENING!!!

 

 

 

Everybody knows ox-eye daisy;  it is so common. It's in the genus Chrysanthemum.

 

They could be called weeds, especially growing in unwanted places, like farmer's fields.  But where they grow in  our neighborhood, we call them wildflowers.

 

I love seeing them all over the hillsides.

 

HAPPY GARDENING!!!

 

 

 

 

The fabric is still in the dryer, so I have no picture.  Oh, wait, here it is.....

 

 

Floyd and Lois need our prayers right now.  For health and strength and optimism.  Bonnie bought Texas blue bonnet fabric at the quilt shop, and I'm making a prayer quilt for them.

 

Every minute I spend at the sewing machine making one of these quilts, I try to focus on our friends, and send them good thoughts.  Each quilt takes about 20 hours to complete.  That's a lot of LOVE. 

 

I've sent one to Bill and Carol Starmer, and one to Ken and Amy Cicala.  You can see I've spent a lot of time in prayer.  That's a good thing, but I'd rather be spending this time with these friends having HAPPY HOUR!!!!

 

GET WELL, MY FRIENDS!!!  I love making quilts, but I'd rather do it for happier occasions.

 

HAPPY QUILTING!!!

 

How beautiful is the Mountain Laurel!!!!  Especially NOW!!!

 

Kalmia latifolia.  This is a close-up picture of a single blossom cluster.  To put it in perspective, it is an evergreen shrub between 3 and 15 feet tall, and it blooms all over the bush.  

 

Native to our mountains, it can be seen as far north as Quebec, and as far south as Florida.  It lives in open forests and rocky places.  Since it is an acid-soil lover, it really loves pine forests.  It is somewhat shade tolerant, but blooms better with some sun.  We have lots in our neighborhood.

 

And it's just starting to bloom.  We should see them for the next couple weeks.  You can see them on the Creekside trail, and along the roads.  If you go up to Brasstown Bald, you'll see them everywhere!    

 

It is beautiful, but POISONOUS.  Not that you'd be tempted to eat it, I'm just sayin, so you know.

 

I read an interesting thing today:  when stem-killed by fire or drought, it can regrow vigorously.  That's great news, since so much was killed by our 2016 drought.  Let's keep an eye out for new growth.

 

HAPPY GARDENING!!!

 

I hope you have checked out the Titmouse nest.  There are four hungry babies, and one very busy Momma bird!!!!!

 

Here's the link:   https://wbu-yorktown.click2stream.com/

 

Go look before they fledge!!  It could be soon.

 

LOVE THE BIRDS!!!

 

Lots of heirloom tomatoes, Swiss chard, Tomatillos, and Kale ready to plant in the garden.  We started these seeds back in March, and have watched them grow to plantable size.

 

NOAA weather is calling for rain starting on Tuesday.  I say, "Let's get these babies in the ground !"  The moon is in Taurus today, a good sign for planting.  Yay!!!

 

Come on over, I have plenty of extras.  And I'm always ready to share garden experiences.  Maybe I should qualify that invitation:  I'll be in the garden from 9:30 - 12:00.  Come then.

 

HAPPY GARDENING!!!

 

FLOWERS FOR YOU!!!!  From Tere and Henry's garden.  Love, Gerry

 

Last year's Leeks are getting ready to bloom!!!  

 

Aren't they the most beautiful blue?   I planted the root end that I cut off a leek that we ate last fall.  I think next time, instead of pulling it out of the ground and replanting the root end, I'll just cut off the leek above the ground and see if it grows back.....

 

If you search the site (go back to the main menu) you will find more about leeks.  I wrote about them last fall, and added a recipe for leek soup.

 

Meanwhile, I'm loving the blooming of Spring.  It's everywhere!!!!!

 

HAPPY GARDENING!!!